Tag Archives: China

Episode 199: Untold stories of the 702 reauthorization In this guestless episode, Michael Vatis, Markham Erickson, and Nick Weaver join me to roundup the news. I explore the final results of the intense jockeying that led to passage of S. 139, which gave section 702 of FISA a new lease on life. The administration did well, weathering… Continue Reading

Episode 198 — Interview with Shane Harris It turns out that the most interesting policy story about Kaspersky software isn’t why the administration banned its products from government use. It’s why the last administration didn’t. Shane Harris is our guest for the podcast, delving into the law and politics of the Kaspersky ban. Along the way,… Continue Reading

Episode 197: Interview with Mara Hvistendahl While the US was transfixed by posturing over the Trump presidency, China has been building the future. Chances are you’ll find one part of that future – social credit scoring – both appalling in principle and irresistible in practice. That at least is the lesson I draw from our interview… Continue Reading

Interview with Susan Hennessey and Andrew McCarthy Episode 195 features an interview with Susan Hennessey of Lawfare and Andrew McCarthy of the National Review. They walk us through the “unmasking” of US identities in intelligence reports — one of the most divisive partisan issues likely to come up in the re-enactment of section 702 of… Continue Reading

Episode 193: David Ignatius and The Quantum Spy We celebrate the holiday season by interviewing David Ignatius, Columnist and Associate Editor at The Washington Post and the author of multiple spy thrillers, including his most recent, The Quantum Spy. David and I discuss themes from the book, from quantum computing to ethnic and gender tensions… Continue Reading

Episode 177: We’re back! In Episode 177, fresh from hiatus, we try to summarize the most interesting cyber stories to break in August. Paul Rosenzweig kicks things off with the Shunning of Kaspersky. I argue that the most significant – though unsupported – claim about Kaspersky is Sen. Shaheen’s assertion that all of the company’s… Continue Reading

Episode 176: Governments to Internet: STFU Everybody’s a critic, and everybody’s a censor, at least if you judge by today’s episode: Maury Shenk tells us the European Court of Justice will soon rule on its authority to censor what Americans read. Markham Erickson discusses the Ninth Circuit decision upholding national security letter gag orders. And Maury says… Continue Reading

175: The Tragedy of Federal IT Procurement This episode is dominated by IT procurement news. And it’s as irresistible as a twelve-car pileup on the Beltway. We open the news with an exploration of the federal de-listing of Kaspersky Labs, and how seriously government contracts lawyers take such an action (h/t to Michael Mutek for… Continue Reading

In this episode, we interview Jim Miller, co-chair of a Defense Science Board panel that reported on how the US is postured for cyberconflict and the importance of deterrence. The short answer: deterring cyberconflict is important because our strategic cyberconflict posture sucks. The DSB report is thoughtful, detailed, and troubling. Jim Miller manages to convey… Continue Reading

168: Globalizing Censorship Episode 168 features the Tinkers-to-Evers-to-Chance of global censorship, as Filipino contractors earning minimum wage delete posts in order to satisfy US tech companies who are trying to satisfy European governments. In addition to Maury Shenk, our panel of interlocutors includes David Sanger, Chief Washington Correspondent for the New York Times, and Karen… Continue Reading

Episode 166 is the interview that goes with episode 165’s news roundup, released separately to ensure the timeliness of the news. In episode 166, we interview Kevin Mandia, the CEO and Board Director of FireEye, an intelligence-led security company. FireEye recently outed a new cyberespionage actor associated with the Vietnamese government. Kevin tells us how… Continue Reading

Episode 153: Fancy Bear, Cozy Bear, and … Sneaky Bear? In this episode, Matt Tait, aka @PwnAllTheThings, takes us on a tour of Russia’s cyberoperations. Ever wonder why there are three big Russian intel agencies but only two that have nicknames in cybersecurity research? Matt has the answer to this and all your other Russian… Continue Reading

Episode 152: “Alexa, do you have first amendment rights?” Our guest for episode 152 is Paul Rosenzweig, and we tour the horizon with him. In the news roundup, Stephanie Roy outlines the deregulatory tangle around ISPs, privacy, security, and the FCC. Maury Shenk briefs us on the European legislation authorizing the quashing of terrorist advocacy… Continue Reading

In this week’s episode, we guess at the near-term future with Betsy Cooper and Steve Weber of UC Berkeley’s Center for Long Term Cybersecurity. In all of their scenarios, the future is awash in personal data; the only question is how it’s used. I argue that it will be used to make us fall in… Continue Reading

We couldn’t resist. This week’s topic is of course President-elect Trump and what his election could mean for All Things Cyber. It features noted cybercommentator Paul Rosenzweig and Daily Beast reporter Shane Harris. In the news, we’re reminded of the old Wall Street saying that bulls and bears can both make money in the market… Continue Reading

John Carlin leaves Justice: We give him the good news and the bad news. Episode 134 features John Carlin’s swan song as assistant attorney general for national security. We review the highs and lows of his tenure from a cybersecurity point of view and then look to the future, including how the US should respond… Continue Reading

Edward Snowden criticizes Russia’s mass surveillance law, and a Russian official retaliates by outing him ‒ as a Russian intelligence source. Silent Circle, the phone company that built its marketing on fear and loathing of the NSA, is nearing bankruptcy. And members of the dominant European Parliament faction are asking the Commission, “Hey! How come… Continue Reading

No holds are barred as a freewheeling panel of cryptographers and security pros duke it out with me and the Justice Department over going dark, exceptional access, and the Apple-FBI conflict. Among the combatants: Patrick Henry, a notable cryptographer with experience at GCHQ, NSA, and the private sector; Dan Kaminsky, the Chief Scientist at White Ops;… Continue Reading

Just how sophisticated are the nations planning and carrying out cyberattacks on electric grids? Very, is the short answer. Our guest for episode 111, Suzanne Spaulding, DHS’s Under Secretary for the National Protection and Programs Directorate, lays out just how much planning and resources went into the attack on Ukraine’s grid, what it means for… Continue Reading

Steptoe recently held a client briefing in its Palo Alto office to update developments in the Chinese legal and regulatory that are impacting US technology companies operating in China. I took advantage of the event to sneak in a quick discussion with Susan Munro and Ying Huang of Steptoe’s China practice, on how China is… Continue Reading

What kind of internet world order does China want, and will it succeed? That’s the question we ask Adam Segal, Maurice R. Greenberg Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relation and author of The Hacked World Order. We review China’s surprising success at getting tech companies to help it build an authoritarian Internet –… Continue Reading

Did China’s PLA really stop hacking US companies for commercial secrets? And does it matter? In episode 92, we ask those questions and more of two experts on the topic ‒ Washington Post reporter Ellen Nakashima, who has broken many stories on PLA hacking, and Tony Cole, the Global Government CTO with FireEye, who has… Continue Reading

Where the hell are the FTC, Silicon Valley, and CDT when human rights and privacy are on the line? If the United States announced that it had been installing malware on 2% of all the laptops that crossed US borders, the lawsuits would be flying thick and fast, and every company in Silicon Valley would… Continue Reading

Stewart Baker

Stewart served as the first Assistant Secretary for Policy at the Department of Homeland Security where he set cybersecurity policy, including inward investment reviews focused on network security. More

About This Blog

Steptoe Cyberblog, with its sometimes contrasting insights, serves up opinionated and provocative thoughts on the issues — especially cybersecurity and privacy — that arise at the intersection of law, information technology, and security.

Stay Connected To Steptoe

About Steptoe

Steptoe & Johnson LLP is an international law firm widely recognized for vigorous advocacy in complex litigation and arbitration, successful representation of clients before governmental agencies, and creative and practical advice in guiding business transactions. The firm has more than 500 lawyers and other professionals in offices in Beijing, Brussels, Chicago, London, Los Angeles, New York, Phoenix, San Francisco and Washington. For more information, visit the Steptoe website www.steptoe.com or contact us directly by visiting our Contact Page.